In Part Two, Kathy moves with Ruth and Tommy to a transitional housing facility known as the Cottages. They adjust to their new lives, becoming acquainted with the “veteran” students living there already. Ruth often ignores Tommy and Kathy in her efforts to blend in with the veterans, who are not from Hailsham. Kathy notices that the veterans regard the Hailsham students with awe. One couple, Chrissie and Rodney, are especially interested in Hailsham. They convince Ruth to go with them to Norfolk, where Rodney claims to have seen Ruth’s “possible” in an open-plan office (a “possible” is a human that resembles a specific clone and from whom that clone's DNA may have been copied). Kathy is skeptical of Rodney’s story, especially since it features Ruth’s “dream future” of working in an open-plan office. In the end, Kathy, Tommy, Ruth, Rodney, and Chrissie all drive to Norfolk.
In Norfolk, Chrissie and Rodney ask about a rumored exception allowing Hailsham couples in love to defer their donations. Ruth pretends to know something about deferrals, which surprises Kathy and Tommy. The students eventually find the open-plan office. Rodney points to a woman in the window, and they all agree that she could be Ruth’s legitimate possible. They follow her to an art gallery, where they realize that the woman does not actually resemble Ruth. In her disappointment, Ruth says that the students are modeled only on “trash.” Ruth goes off with Chrissie and Rodney. Meanwhile, Tommy and Kathy find a copy of Kathy’s lost tape in a secondhand store. Tommy tells Kathy that he has begun drawing pictures of imaginary animals. He thinks Madame uses the students’ artwork to determine if couples applying for deferrals are truly in love. After Norfolk, Ruth stops talking about her dream future. Tommy shows his drawings to Kathy, who finds them puzzling but captivating. Meanwhile, Kathy’s friendship with Ruth grows increasingly tense. Ruth reveals that she knows Kathy likes Tommy, but says that Tommy will never return Kathy’s feelings. Shortly afterwards, Kathy submits her application for carer training and departs.